When one thought of Boohwal Seo Jae-Hyuck, bass always comes to mind. A musical instrument he’s spent 20 years with. The affection is as sweet as newly weds, thick and strong. Of course it’s not always turbulent. That’s how it is these days. There’s a change in Seo Jae-Hyuck’s heart. The love is the same as always. But he feels some indication of affairs.

“왜 그런지 모르겠지만, 베이스 연주가보다 창작가로 불리는 게 더 기분 좋다.”

“I don’t know why, but I prefer being called a composer than a bassist.”

The time he’s spending with bass is decreasing bit by bit. Instead, he holds the pen in his hands and draw bean sprouts (musical notes). The hand drawing those curves is very smooth. It’s been 17 years since he first started composing music. Under the bass’ shades, he developed his skills without others noticing.

There’s no special reason why he writes songs. He just think of it as a passage to be a musician. He writes most of his songs in the church. He gains experience by developing various prayer songs (hymns). His spirit is as high as his dreams with music. Even when he was still in the police school (military service) he almost never skipped church to write songs.

1984년 서재혁이 동물원에서 얼룩말과 코끼리를 배경으로 포즈를 취하고 있다.

=Seo Jae-Hyuck in a zoo (1984), zebras and elephants in the background=

“그 때 만든 곡들을 가끔 연주한다. 유치하지만 귀엽고 예쁜 느낌이 들어 동심으로 돌아가게 된다.”

“Sometimes I played the songs I wrote back then. They’re childish, but cute; and I find them beautiful it feels like I’m returning to innocence.”

After discharged from the police service, Seo Jae-Hyuck wrote a lot of songs. Just as singers who appeared on TV, he also wanted to stand on the stage. But everytime, he always felt unsatisfied with the songs he writes. He couldn’t write songs out of the pattern of religious hymn. He felt rock-ballad like a tall mountain he couldn’t pass through.

“이전까지 락 음악을 접할 기회가 거의 없었다. 심도 깊은 이해에 상당한 시간이 걸렸다.”

“I almost never had the opportunity to come accross rock music before. It took a very long time to make me really understand the spirit of it.”

He started to gradually grab of the basis of composition after he met Boohwal. The development was hidden in his hard work living a double life. While playing the bass, he separately spends the time learning to compose songs. If he hits a wall, he’d pour all his questions to Boohwal’s leader Kim Tae-Won whose in-charge of song composition. He was so obstinate and keen, that at one point Kim Tae-Won was so annoyed as if he was a cockroach.

Seo Jae-Hyuck’s growth (as a musician) was the start of a new turn for Boohwal. He widen the range of Boohwal’s music by writing songs of different genre,such as “노을” (Glow in the Sunset), “개미” (Ant), “또다시 사랑이” (Love, again), “섬” (Island), “파이란” (Failan), “Oz,” and others. The song “Glow in the Sunset” which was written in 2005, in particular, was inserted in the trailer of the movie “The Dirty Carnival,” and was loved by the public. So he thinks.

서재혁(왼쪽)은 베니와 함께 2005년 상상밴드로 데뷔할 수 있었다. 말 못할 사정으로 계획은 어긋났다.

=Seo Jae-Hyuck (left and Bennie debuted in 2005 as “SangSang Band.” Due to an incident the team broke off.=

“내 곡들이 그간 부활 스타일과 조금 다르다. 한정된 느낌이 짙던 부활 음악의 껍질을 깨는데 일조하고 있다고 생각한다.”

“My songs are different fromBoohwal’s style. I think I contributed to peeling off the shell of Boohwal’s music that was monotonous.”

Although various songs were inserted into Boohwal’s album, he didn’t feel satisfied. He has an ambition about writing a song that touches people’s hearts. Thus he likes to open the window at his house and look down to the Han River. That’s his way of getting inspiration for his music.

As Kim Tae-Won, he doesn’t limit his ears. He starts and ends his day listening to jazz. He believes that one should always listen to music to be able to create new ideas. That’s why he keeps his hope. For a wide breadth of Boohwal’s music universe.

“I tends to get inspirations from young fellows a lot . Sometimes they even surprise me, making me think ‘Wow, you could also make music this way!’ I think it’ll be of help for Boohwal. Since the music I pursue is different with Tae-Won Hyeong’s style, I think it could enrich the width of Boohwal’s music.

Spring 1994. Seo Jae-Hyuck was disoriented. It’s because he lacked sleep. The first job he’s got really wore him off. The first occupation he did after discharged from the military service was a band. As a bass musician, he stood on the stage together with the singer Choi Jae-Hoon.

Because of the busy schedule, his body and soul was exhausted. But he felt really great at heart. After finishing the album recording, the cheering from spectators was like a medicine that makes him feel good inside. Also the attention from the industry that recognizes his skills, makes him like the job he was doing. Mouth to mouth rumors have a huge effect. While he was working with Choi Jae-Hoo’s band, he could also join the album recording for “Turbo”, “Position”, and other artists.

He always enjoy playing music. Music, that he’d always wanted to do. He also felt proud of himself for not letting go of that dream. But there was also some doubts. The compensation does not follow the hard work he put in. Overdue or unpaid wage. His pockets were always empty. On the other hand, only broadcasting and events schedule were increasing and arguments with the manager became frequent.

Seo Jae-Hyuck decisively quit from Choi Jae-Hoon band. 절이 싫어 중이 떠난 격이었다. Binded by an unseen strap, none of his colleagues stood out to welcome him. Obviously, there was something wrong with the music industry.

Playing bass in his spare time, he experienced different things. Event planner, music video producer, stage actor… all works related to music. He was disoriented once again. It was not because of overworking. He simply envied those people playing music on the stage.

“‘내가 여기서 무엇을 하고 있나’라는 생각이 들었다. 한순간 정체성을 잃어버린 듯 했다.”

“‘What am I doing here,’ I thought. It seemed like I had lost my identity for a moment.”

After quite a moment of thinking, he realized. The fact that he’s lingering around the works relating to music. There was no meaning in feeling left out or out of place anymore. So he made up his mind. No matter he’d have an empty stomach, he’d make his living by standing on the stage.

Thanks to his recent popularity, he could get jobs pretty easily. Over time, more agencies come to have faith in musicians . His popularity was as good as Korea’s best music production agency Doremi Record would have come with an offer.

With the smooth path he was walking, he started to feel power coming through again on his shoulders. He became arrogant. It felt like he could even produce an album all by himself and succeed. So together with Kim Yoon-Seong, they recorded a song and went around visiting production agencies.

반응은 냉담했다. 손을 내민 기획사가 한 곳도 없었다. 둘은 결성도 못한 채 해체의 쓴잔을 마셔야 했다.

The response was rather cold. Not one single agency offered to receive them. The two had to separate ways even before they made a team.

“Yun-Seong Hyeong was hugely disappointed that he took off to the States. But he had faith in me. In the airport, he said I’ve done a good job and opened the opportunity for me to join Boohwal’s audition.”

Actually, Seo Jae-Hyuck didn’t incline to the offer. He had no interest in rock music, he also didn’t like the image stained with drugs. He also felt uncomfortable with the relative difference of the members’ ages.

But he hated living as a mere session musician even more. He felt that it was time that he showed his own color of music. He picked up the phone heavily. After a moment, he was connected to Kim Tae-Won who bluntly said,

“‘론리 나잇’과 ‘사랑할수록’ 연주를 준비해오세요.”

“Please be prepared to perform ‘Lonely Night’ and “사랑할수록'(The More I Love).”

Seo Jae-Hyuck’s felt offended. He didn’t feel good about auditioning with ballad song, for a rock band. A momentary childishness. Later he came to realize the fact that he could increase his standard by copying and re-arranging music. His hands became used to the two songs through endless practice. However, the audition was over in 30 seconds in reality.

서재혁이 상상밴드 데뷔를 앞두고 찍은 프로필 사진

=A profile picture of Seo Jae-Hyuck a while before the debut of “상상밴드” =

Spring 1990. There was a loud cheer in the Seo Jae-Hyuck’s church. They heard a surprising news. Jin Yeong-Seong, the bassist of the band “Black Rose” was appointed the church choir conductor. Seo Jae-Hyuck’s idolized “Black Rose.” With “Mugunghwa” and “Horang Nabi,” they were Seoul’s top three bands. Seo Jae-Hyuck, who learned bass autodidactly, was confident that he had nothing more to learn. Thus he was fluttering. It was like he was gonna be acknowledged by a maestro.

It wasn’t a mere confidence. He has been playing various musical instruments since he was little. Acoustic, electric guitar, piano, drum… he plays them all like an expert. He first had his eyes on bass in the second year of junior high school. He bought his friend’s bass half price, and practiced everyday with it.

He learned them all by self-learning. Music program on TV was his manual. He recorded the TV programs where Lee Mun-Se, Lee Tae-Yoon, Songgolme and watched them over and over to follow. That’s how he got used to the slap styles and others, and he was proud of it. He always aroused exclamations from his friends. Envious look around him. Seo Jae0Hyuck was getting sky-high little by little.

With four friends he visited the house of Jin Yeong-Seong. They played the bass in front of his house. Seo Jae-Hyuck was the last performer. As if ridiculing his friends’ performances, he showed all of his techniques. However, the feedback was disappointing. 직접 베이스를 만져가며 문제점을 지적했다.

Jin Yeong-Seong didn’t have his eyes on Seo Jae-Hyuck. He’s not talented enough. The reason was his long and thin fingers. In dealing with Western musical instruments, it’s a disadvantageous physical requirement. He never put interest on Seo Jae-Hyuck. 그는 오기가 발동했다. He wanted to get his confidence back. Firmly determined, he was absorbed into practicing once again. The retreat he joined during the summer vacation was his starting line. He played the bass from 5 o’clock in the morning until the sun sets.

“하루 평균 18시간 동안 베이스와 함께했다. 아마 찬송가는 거의 다 연주했을 거다.”

“I spent an average of 18 hours a day with bass. I might have played all of the hymn songs.”

His skills develop so much he wasn’t lagging even when compared to a professional musician. At one point he was most favorited to be recruited in a band in his vicinity. He enjoyed the stage performance. Thus his name was in as many as 5 different bands. His instrument of choice was not limited to bass. Drum, guitar, keyboard, and many others. He also sings bariton in a choir (could be duet, trio, or quartet).

A smooth highway in music. But his school grades were falling head over heels. From the top 5 ranking that he used to frequent, he dropped to below 40. He was not the least concern about it. Since the first year of high school, he’s made up his mind that he wanted to enter Seoul Institute of Arts and become a musician.

The problem was his family was against his will. His mother wished that his eldest son could enter university and live a normal life of a salaryman. She wanted him to concentrate on his studies so much that she’d even suggested the family to move to a place with a better environment. However, his son was stubborn (firm) with his intentions. So she put on some requirements. If he’d enter the university for 4 years, she’d buy him musical instrument. Seeing something of his appeal. Seo Jae-Hyuck gave up Seoul Institute of Arts. He entered the physics department in Suwon University instead.

Incheon Seoknam Elementary School, 1985. Crowds of children playing here and there in the school yard. The children drew lines between the sports they play using sneakers. Inside the flying dusts, their own baseball field was made. The game didn’t start immediately. Everybody was waiting for someone. Not long after, a boy came leisurely. Judging from his figure, he looked like an athlete. Brilliant MBC Blue Dragon uniform. His two hands were full with bats and gloves. All of the other kids approached and greeted him. Ten years old Seo Jae-Hyuck. He knew it well. The know-how to be a popular kid in school.

Seo Jae-Hyuck was class president. Thanks to the baseball gears he’s got, he led a lot of friends. The sports gear was presents from his Father. His father was in the army. Because of his job, Seo Jae-Hyuck had to move a lot as a child. Every time they had to pack up and move again, his father worried about his son’s development. He wanted to give his son a means of communication. After a long thinking, he thought of baseball. Through the popularity of the newly established pro baseball, he thought it was a good way to gain other children’s interest. He bought the baseball gears from the American Army Base right away. More than 10 different gloves and bats. The expensive price was not a problem. He only expects his son to grow up well.

진한 부성의 결말은 밝았다. He’d win the hearts of his peers with unusual playing toys. Seo Jae-Hyuck became the commander of the kids in no time. The power was marvelous. He called on the line ups as he wants and draw the tactics they’d play. He usually plays the pitcher. He thought one would have to stand on the mound to be the star of the game. An ongoing dictatorship. But there was no resistance. Because no one could imagine the game without him.

With the confidence he gained through baseball, his school life was a boulevard for him. His grades were also excellent. He was always the first or second in the class ranking. A flawless model student. But the scope was only as wide as the school area. His life outside of the “well” was a total opposite. That’s how it was in the church his mother advised him to go to. He was an outsider. It was really difficult for him even just to make a conversation with other children.

“다른 세계에 온 듯 했다. 부유하고 잘난 친구들이 즐비했다. 자존심에 상처를 받은 뒤로 혼자 놀게 됐다.”

“It was like coming into a new world. Rich and outstanding students were lining up. His confidence was hurt and he spent time all by himself since.”

As he hits adolescence, his inferiority complex was upsurging. He went to the church more seldom. His mother, who wished for her son to be a religious person, was saddened. 자신감을 북독아주고 싶었다. At the end of her agony, she thought of a guitar. The church has band activities. She thought that if it were for the music that his son likes, his feelings of belonging to the church would be just a matter of time.

His mother’s prediction was correct. His footsteps to the church become more and more often. Guitar sufficiently became an object of his interest. He loved it more than he loved baseball. He’d practice really hard every evening. Rapidly progressing skills. Seo Jae-Hyuck was in charge playing the guitar in the church band before he knew it. Friends come around him one after another. He was not alone anymore. Just as he also was in school, a star.